It is well-known to apply cold packs to the skin surface of a patient that has undergone trauma. The cold pack can reduce pain and prevent or reduce swelling. Conventionally, the cold pack, cooled by ice or activated chemicals, is applied to the site of the trauma over bandaging. Cold packs are typically applied at the site of a trauma such as a contusion or sprain. Cold packs are further applied in the area of a laceration that will soon undergo, or have undergone, suturing. A cold pack can be applied to a laceration to act as an anesthetic by numbing the area until a surgeon or physician can suture the wound.
The cold pack is usually held in place by the patient receiving treatment. The requirement to hold the cold pack in position restricts the mobility of the patient and can in some circumstances be uncomfortable. Stretch wraps, tapes or other support materials have been improvised to support cold packs in location on the patient. Typically, these forms of improvised support materials are only appropriate for the limbs or head where the support material can encircle the patient to maintain the cold pack in position. Use of the cold pack in other portions of the body typically again requires the cold pack to be hand held into position. Furthermore in certain types of surgery, particularly nasal or nose surgery, cold packs are required to be applied to the area of trauma for the first 24 to 48 hours. This extended treatment with a cold pack further increases the inconvenience of holding by hand the cold pack on the patient.
Prior designs have attempted to overcome these difficulties with supports having a pouch to receive a cold pack and an encircling portion to surround the limb or head of the patient. These cold pack supports are still inappropriate for some portions of the body.